Ben Franklin's World

Think the Boston Tea Party made America a coffee-drinking nation? Historian Michelle McDonald reveals the truth: colonists were already choosing coffee over tea because it was cheaper. Michelle Craig McDonald, the Librarian/Director of the Library & Museum at the American Philosophical Society and author of Coffee Nation: How One Commodity Transformed the Early United States, explains how coffee shaped American identity long before the Revolution. You'll hear about Revolutionary-era women storming a Boston warehouse to seize hoarded coffee and sell it at regulated prices. You'll discover why Parliament protected coffee while taxing tea. And you'll learn how enslaved Caribbean laborers made America's favorite beverage possible. From colonial coffee houses to debates about caffeine addiction in the early republic, discover how one imported commodity became distinctly American. Michelle's Website | Book |Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/429 EPISODE OUTLINE 00:00:00  Introduction 00:03:20  Meet our Guest  00:04:35  Coffee vs. Tea in Early America 00:06:50  Coffeehouses and How Coffee Was Served 00:08:04  Medical Concerns About Coffee 00:09:12  Coffee Production 00:12:35  Attempts to Grow Coffee in North America 00:14:04 The Use of Enslaved Labor in Coffee Cultivation 00:19:50 The Early American Market for Coffee 00:22:21  Early American Coffee Connoisseurs 00:29:57  Early American Coffeehouses 00:34:48  Coffee and the American Revolution 00:36:40 The Boston Coffee Riot, 1777 00:42:48 Coffee in the Early Republic 00:45:00 Coffee and the Haitian Revolution 00:47:53 Early Republic Attempts to Grow Coffee 00:50:55 Early Republic Coffee Culture 00:53:56 Time Warp 00:58:31 Conclusion RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 160: The Politics of Tea🎧 Episode 161: Smuggling and the American Revolution🎧 Episode 288: Smugglers & Patriots in the 18th-Century Atlantic World🎧 Episode 294: 1774, The Long Year of American Revolution🎧 Episode 319: Cuba: An Early American History🎧 Episode 401: Tea, Boycotts, & Revolution SUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community🌍 Join the History Explorers ClubLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the 1820s, American entrepreneurs, engineers, and politicians dared to dream big. They believed they could cut a canal, not through Panama, but through the wild, rain-soaked terrain of Nicaragua. Their goal: To link the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and transform global trade forever. But what inspired these ambitious "canal dreamers?” And why did they believe Nicaragua held the key to controlling the future of commerce?  Jessica Lepler, Associate Professor of History at the University of New Hampshire and author of Canal Dreamers: The Epic Quest to Connect the Atlantic and Pacific in the Age of Revolutions, joins us to explore this nearly forgotten story of innovation, illusion, and international ambition in early American history. Jessica’s Website | Book Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/428 EPISODE OUTLINE00:01:00  Introduction00:04:05 Desire to Build a Canal Across Central America00:08:01 Political Landscape of Central America During the 1820s00:09:55 Creating a Stable Central American Government00:11:55 Geography of the Nicaraguan Canal Route00:16:03 Economic Opportunities of an Interoceanic Canal00:17:57 Individual vs. State Interest in a Nicaraguan Canal00:21:58 Why Americans Sought A Private Canal Contract00:26:44 Information Canal Dreamers Relied On to Build a Canal00:33:12 Competitive Advantages of American Canal Dreamers00:35:40 American Surveys of a Central American Canal Route00:39:12 Influence of the Erie Canal00:42:32 Why the Nicaraguan Canal Failed00:44:50 What Canal Dreamers Reveal About the Early United States 0046:40 Overview of the Panama Canal00:49:50 Time Warp00:56:00 ConclusionRECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 028: Building the Erie Canal🎧 Episode 090: The Age of American Revolutions🎧 Episode 113: Building the Empire State🎧 Episode 165: The Age of Revolutions🎧 Episode 186: The New Map of Empire🎧 Episode 329: Freemasonry in Early AmericaSUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community🌍 Join the History Explorers ClubLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As we look ahead to the 250th anniversary—the semiquincentennial—of the Declaration of Independence in 2026, communities and commissions across the United States are asking big questions: How should we commemorate this historic milestone?
What’s the right balance between celebration and education? And how can this moment bring people together across political divides, generational gaps, and complex histories? To explore these questions, I’ve invited my friend, colleague, and Clio Digital Media co-founder Karin Wulf to guest host a special conversation with two people who are leading the way: Gregg Amore, Chair of the Rhode Island 250 Commission, and Carly Fiorina, Chair of the Virginia 250 Commission. Together, they reveal how their states are planning commemorative programs that center civic engagement, local storytelling, and inclusive history—and how the 250th can be more than a moment. It can be a spark. Karin’s Website | Book |Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/427 EPISODE OUTLINE00:00:00  Introduction00:01:10  Welcome & Episode Overview00:04:45  Guest Introductions00:07:32 Virginia & Rhode Island's Commemorative Plans00:11:21 State Efforts and Collaborations00:16:32 Engaging Young People00:20:11 Educational Initiatives00:22:13 Ken Burns's The American Revolution00:24:30 Navigating the Political Climate00:32:05 Reflections on the Bicentennial00:35:00 Challenges to Achieving Commemorative Goals00:42:51 Conclusion and Future Opportunities00:46:53 Final ThoughtsRECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 250: Virginia, 1619🎧 Episode 373: The Gaspee Affair🎧 Episode 417: Roger Williams, Rogue Puritan🎧 Episode 416: Lineage: Genealogy in Early America🎧 Episode 424: Dunmore's Proclamation & the American Revolution in Virginia🎧 Episode 425: Ken Burns's The American RevolutionSUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community🌍 Join the History Explorers ClubLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Each November, we Americans come together to celebrate Thanksgiving, a holiday that invites us to reflect on gratitude, community, and the stories we tell about our past. But what do we really know about the origins of this holiday? What did the “First Thanksgiving” look like, and who were the people who made it happen? In honor of Thanksgiving, we’re revisiting our 2018 conversation with Rebecca Fraser, author of The Mayflower: The Families, The Voyage, and the Founding of America. This rich conversation offers a look at the English Separatists or Pilgrims who settled in Massachusetts. It explores who they were, why they came to North America, and what their life was like in the early years of Plymouth Colony. Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/213RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 095: A Tale of Two Bostons🎧 Episode 104: The Saltwater Frontier🎧 Episode 121: The Dutch Moment in the 17th-Century Atlantic World🎧 Episode 182: The Great Awakening in New England🎧 Episode 290: The World of the Wampanoag, Part 1🎧 Episode 291: The World of the Wampanoag, Part 2SUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s WorldREQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter 👩‍💻 Join the BFW Listener Community🌍 Join the History Explorers ClubLISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 PandoraCONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s WebsiteSAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Thanksgiving approaches, many Americans are gathering to reflect on gratitude, family—and of course—food. It's the time of year when we may think about the so-called "First Thanksgiving" and imagine scenes of Pilgrims and Native peoples gathering in Massachusetts to share in the bounty of their fall harvests. But how much do we really know about the food systems and agricultural knowledge of Indigenous peoples of North America? In what ways were the Wampanoag people able to contribute to this harvest celebration—and what have we gotten wrong about their story? Michael Wise, Associate Professor of History at the University of North Texas and author of Native Foods: Agriculture, Indigeneity, and Settler Colonialism in American History, joins us to challenge four persistent myths about Indigenous food practices. Discover how Native communities shaped and stewarded the land and its agriculture long before European colonists arrived—and why this history matters more than we might think. Michael’s Website | Book |Show Notes: https://www.benfranklinsworld.com/426 EPISODE OUTLINE00:00:00  Introduction00:01:10  Episode Introduction00:03:43 Guest Introduction00:04:30 Myths about Indigenous Agriculture00:11:29  Indigenous and European Gender Roles00:15:56 Wampanoag Agriculture00:17:29 Wampanoag Corn Cultivation00:25:59 Wampanoag Cuisine00:27:52 Indigenous Disspossession in New England00:32:58 Cherokee Agriculture00:37:13 The Cherokee Hunter Myth00:40:53 The Origin of the Myths about Native American Agriculture00:45:40 Future Projects00:47:13 Closing Thoughts & Resources RECOMMENDED NEXT EPISODES🎧 Episode 131: Thomas Jefferson's Empire of Liberty🎧 Episode 189: The Little Ice Age🎧 Episode 278: Polygamy: An Early American History🎧 Episode 290: The World of the Wampanoag, Pt 1🎧 Episode 291: The World of the Wampanoag, Pt 2🎧 Episode 323: American Expansion and the Political Economy of Plunder SUPPORT OUR WORK🎁 Make a Donation to Ben Franklin’s World REQUEST A TOPIC📨 Topic Request Form📫 [email protected] WHEN YOU'RE READY🗞️ BFW Gazette Newsletter👩‍💻 BFW Listener Community🌍 The History Explorers Club  LISTEN 🎧🍎 Apple Podcasts 💚 Spotify 🎶 Amazon Music🛜 Pandora CONNECT🦋 Liz on Bluesky👩‍💻 Liz on LinkedIn🛜 Liz’s Website SAY THANKS💜 Leave a review on Apple Podcasts💚 Leave a rating on Spotify*Book links are affiliate links. Every purchase supports the podcast. = Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices